The Fifth Lap

  THE FIFTH LAP Gippsland Victoria Last:  Embarkation ( NSW ) Photo Album: Gippsland Victoria We had an early start from Bombala as we had to get to the Philip Island in one long drive, a good 400+Km by my Maps.me App.  The route would take Sandi through the Gippsland regions of Victoria passing a number of major towns, such as Bairnsdale, Sales, Traralgon etc.  Not an adventure by any parlance. We did not make it to Philip Island, and had to stop at Leongatha for one night.  It was a quiet night sleeping at the car park of the local golf club. When we reached Philip Island the next morning, which I last visited 15 years ago ( 2008 ), I had to go to the local Visitor Center to get a map of the local attractions.  Philip Island is a popular weekend destination for many a Melbournians as it is only about 80Km away, and is fairly well developed.  Don't expect any exciting adventures here for Sandi though. The first stop was the Nobbies, at the southw...

THE FIFTH LAP Embarkation ( NSW ) Last:   Prologue Photo Album:  Embarkation ( NSW ) It was an auspicious day , the full moon was coming and the weather was perfect !!!  So the folklore has it ! But it was more a choice determined by the need to getting ready with supplies, clearing out all the known not-so-minor gremlins, and letting the family get used to the idea of this being a 6 month expedition, with no destination in mind. A stick was thrown into the air, and it pointed south.  So we embarked. I decided to roll into a Resource Recovery Center, another euphemism for “rubbish landfill” or “tip” in the old parlance, to weigh the truck.  It weighed 5.92 tonnes, before adding fuel to the 9 gerry cans onboard.  I estimated, after filling the gerry cans up, it would add another 180Kg, making approximately 6.1 T, still well below the GVM limit of Sandi’s 6.5T, and with the 150L water tank already full, I don’t expect the head room to be used any time so...

Our 5th Lap of Australia Table of Contents Prologue                         Day 1 - 2         Embarkation ( NSW )   2023                         Day 3 - 4         Eastern & Central Victoria                         Day 5 - 11       Recalling old times in Melbourne                         Day 12 - 13      Digging the Gold Digging Part (i)                           Day 13            Digging the Gold Digging Part (ii)      ...

     THE FIFTH LAP Prologue Finally, it is READY !  Sandi is ready to take on the Outback, to take us on our 5th Lap around this Great Continent of ours, Terra Australis ! It’s been a project ( Project Solitude ) that took nearly 30 months of efforts, through the thick and thin of the Covid pandemic, Sandi is finally ready for the challenges of the Outback of Australia.  A project that I undertook without any idea about the depth and breadth of skills that I need to learn along the way. After months of more preparations since Sandi’s maiden trip last July/August, a few major improvements and additions have been made, the most important being the long range fuel arrangement. This is an absolute necessity for the desolate Outback of Australia, long distance between drinks.  And then there is the addition of a twin “safari” hatch, useful for air ventilation in hot weather and a hide for safari photography. But it can never be without any gremlins, ...